


Cross My Heart

by orphan_account



Category: Rise of the Guardians (2012)
Genre: F/M, Friendship, Gen, I won't judge, Romance, basically whatever you wanna interpret it as, i don't care, if you see it as a friendship story then that's cool, if you see it as a romance then that's cool too, no specified genre, they/them pronouns are used for character of unspecified gender
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-03
Updated: 2015-04-07
Packaged: 2018-03-21 01:44:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 11,595
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3672870
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A short tale in three parts.<br/>Pitch returns after thirty-something odd years to attempt to best the Guardians yet again. But Jack Frost and the Man in the Moon have an ace up their sleeve...</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Jack gazed cheerfully down at the students filing out of the school from his perch within the branches of a nearby tree. Today was the start of their winter break and Jack had been more than happy to grant Jamie and his friends a fresh layer of snow. As he watched, those very same children took up some very crudely-made snowballs and began a snowball fight, giggling and laughing and all around having fun.

It had been, now, five years since the events with Pitch and the Guardians had seen neither hide nor hair of the immortal. By now Jamie was well into his freshman year of high school, but Jack still regarded him and his friends as children and took great joy in the fact that they continued to believe in him after all that time. Belief in him had spread significantly after the battle with Pitch, but, for Jack, Jamie would always be the most important of his believers.

Jack was startled out of his reverie when a snowball smacked him in the face, knocking him from his perch in the tree. He tumbled to the ground and landed face first in a pile of snow. When he managed to pull himself up, he grinned at the sight of Jamie and his friends surrounding him.

“Snowball fight,” Jamie said, grinning mischievously, “you in or what?”

Jack, wasting no time, launched a snowball straight for Jamie, smirking.

“Oh, I’m in all right.”

Across the way, a girl, looking no older than eighteen and wearing a black hoodie, leaned casually against the trunk of a large tree, shaded by its branches. A smile crept onto her lips as she watched the children, and Jack, play. The Spirit of Winter truly lived up to his reputation. The Guardian of Fun, he was now called, and anyone could see why.

The play continued until the sun began to set. Jack reluctantly sent the children on their way, promising to play with them tomorrow. He watched as they left and was mere seconds from flying off to fulfill other winter duties when he caught sight of the girl. She had remained under the same tree, watching the entire scene, silent and just barely smiling. Their blue eyes locked and it was then that Jack realized the girl could see him.

Jack was just about to call out to the girl when she slipped behind the tree and out of sight. Curiosity overcoming him, Jack raced to the tree and circled it in disbelief, finding nothing to prove the girl had been there, not even footprints.

“Maybe I’m imagining things,” he muttered, sighing as he took to the skies and soared off to complete his winter work.

The next day came and Jack fulfilled his promise to play with Jamie and his friends again, switching from snowball fights to snow fort competitions to finally telling them stories in the park, a light snowfall settling around them.

“And when the Prince chased after her, he discovered no trace of Cinderella but a single glass slipper she had lost in her haste to leave.”

Regardless of the fact that each child had heard the story of Cinderella countless times, all remained completely enamored with Jack’s recounting of the age-old tale. Even the mysterious girl from the previous day couldn’t help but smile as she listened, shaded beneath a nearby tree.

“Finally, the Prince tried the shoe on Cinderella, the young maiden covered in soot and ashes, and both exclaimed with joy, “It fits!” The Prince proposed to Cinderella on the spot and the two were married within the week. And they both lived happily ever after.”

The children, well, teenagers, cheered at the end of the story and Jack was delighted to be able to bring such joy into their hearts, even through a retelling of a cliche old fairy tale. He glanced around the group, smiling brightly. It wasn’t until he felt an extra pair of eyes on his form that he glanced away from the teenagers and again locked eyes with the mystery girl. Jack instantly stood, intending to pursue the girl, but, by the time he reached his feet, she was gone.

“What did you see, Jack?” Jamie asked, following the immortal’s gaze in confusion.

Jack sighed and shook his head. “Nothing,” he lied, “...hey, how about a snowman contest?”

And, again, the mystery girl had evaded Jack.

****  


* * *

Jamie found Jack in the park the next day, frosting over the pond. Jamie, fully trusting in Jack, made his way out onto the frozen water of the pond and sat beside the immortal, holding up a copy of the day’s newspaper. The headline read: “Mayor’s child on deathbed”. Jack skimmed through the article, his eyes widening as he saw why Jamie had brought the paper. The child, a young girl no more than eleven, wished to meet Jack Frost before she passed on, having heard all the other children speak so wonderfully of the Spirit of Winter.

“I think you should go to her,” Jamie said, “she’d love it."

Jack nodded, handing the paper back to Jamie. “Who am I to deny the wish of one of my believers?”

Jamie smiled at that and replied, “Take all the time you need. My friends and I will be fine today.”

“I know you will,” Jack said, standing and ruffling Jamie’s hair before taking to the sky.

It was early afternoon by the time Jack finally worked himself up enough to go visit the Mayor’s daughter. He was lucky enough to find an open window he could sneak through and entered the hospital. Rather than root through hundreds of files to find the girl’s room, Jack simply chose to play the game “Follow the Reporter” and found the Mayor in no time, speaking with one of the journalists that had come, in the waiting room across the hall from his daughter’s hospital room.

As the door was just barely open, Jack took the chance and silently closed it himself once he was inside. When he turned to examine the room, he found the girl laying propped up in her bed, many tubes and wires surrounding her. She was staring blankly down at a beaten teddy bear in her arms and let out a soft sigh. Jack slowly approached her bedside, and his movement caught her eye. The girl looked up and her little jaw dropped at the sight.

“Jack Frost?” she asked, her voice soft and timid.

Jack smiled at her and closed the distance between himself and the girl in an instant. “So I heard you wanted to meet me?”

Tears of joy welled in the girl’s eyes before she leaned forward and gathered Jack in a weak embrace with all the strength she could muster. Jack gave in and seated himself on the edge of her bed, returning the hug.

“All the other kids,” the girl whispered, “they all say you’re so nice...I...I wish I was healthy enough to go play with you each year…”

Jack gently held the girl close, letting her bury her face in his shoulder. After a long moment, the girl finally pulled back and began to wipe her tears away with the backs of her hands.

“I’m sorry you can’t go play outside,” Jack said softly, still continuing to smile for her, “but, I could tell you some stories…”

At this the girl’s eyes welled with tears again and she gratefully nodded. And so, Jack began to speak, telling the tale of a beautiful princess who was locked away in a tower until the day her charming prince arrived.

As the sun set, Jack concluded his third story and watched as the girl’s breathing slowed and she fell asleep. There was a great smile on her face to match Jack’s, and he was so glad he had taken the chance to meet her. Silently, the Guardian stood and slipped out, leaving the door to the girl’s room just barely cracked.

“She’s a wonderful girl, isn’t she?”

Jack jumped at the voice and turned rapidly toward the source. The culprit was none other than that mysterious girl who’d been following him around for the past two days, only, this time, she had donned a form-fitting black leather jacket and matching leather pants. The hair she had kept hidden within her hood in each past meeting now tumbled over her shoulders, an obnoxious bright blue to match her eyes. Jack couldn’t help but stare as he finally got a good look at the girl who could see him but who he could sense no power of belief from.

“Who...who are you?” Jack finally asked, confusion clear on his face.

“Call me Nat.”

Jack had a feeling that the girl wasn’t telling the full truth, but he let that slide.

“Okay, next question...why can you see me? I don’t sense any belief in you.”

“I’m not here to talk about me, Jack Frost,” Nat said, “I’m here to watch over the girl, Anina.”

“If you’re supposed to watch over Anina,” Jack asked, “then why have you been following me around? And how have you been disappearing so fast?”

“Jack,” Nat said, frowning, “I’ve been following you for Anina. It was her last wish to meet you and I took it upon myself to be sure that that happened.”

“Still doesn’t explain how you can see me,” Jack replied.

“I already told you that I’m not here to talk about me,” Nat said, “not that I could answer your questions anyhow. There are rules, Jack, and I must follow them. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to see Anina.”

Before Jack could protest, Nat had slipped past him and disappeared into Anina’s hospital room, closing the door behind herself.

The next day’s headline brought Jack to his knees. Anina had died the previous night, peacefully passing on in her sleep. In fact, Jack noticed, she had passed just an hour after his visit, that smile still stuck on her pale lips.

It was Jack who went to Jamie that morning, slipping into the boy’s bedroom through the window and gently shaking him awake. In no time at all the brown-haired boy awoke and grinned at the sight of Jack before noting the immortal’s expression.

“Jack?” Jamie asked, “What’s wrong?”

Jack opened his mouth, having been fully prepared to tell Jamie about everything, but just as quickly looked away and sighed.

“Jack?” Jamie asked again.

“The mayor’s daughter died,” Jack finally answered, “read it in the paper this morning…”

Jamie frowned. “Did you get to see her?”

Jack nodded. “She was a sweet girl...I guess it just hurts to learn that she was only holding on for me.”

Jamie sighed and moved to rest a hand on Jack’s shoulder, smiling just barely up at the immortal.

“She died happy, then,” he said, “if the prospect of a visit from you was truly the only thing keeping her here.”

Jack smiled at that, looking over at Jamie. “I suppose you’re right.”

Jamie nodded, watching Jack carefully. Something was clearly still bugging the Spirit of Winter.

“Is that it?”

“What?”

“Is that the only thing you wanted to talk about?” Jamie asked, raising an eyebrow, expertly calling Jack on his bluff. With a sigh the immortal shook his head and Jamie motioned for him to be out with the information.

“I’ve been seeing this girl around town,” Jack said, “always dressed in dark clothing, hiding in the shadows. It’s like she’s been following me. And then she showed up outside the hospital room after my visit with the Mayor’s daughter.”

“What’s so strange about her?”

“She’s not a believer, but she can see me.”

Jamie was silent at this news, trying to sort through what that could imply. After a couple minutes without any luck, the teen asked, “Did you talk to her?”

“Only for a moment outside the hospital room. She said she was here to watch over the Mayor’s daughter, that she’d been following me for her,” Jack answered, “and I couldn’t get much more out of her, other than a name that probably isn’t real.”

“What was the name?”

“Nat.”

Jamie frowned. Whoever this girl was clearly didn’t want Jack to learn anything useful about her, which brought up a whole other set of questions and possibilities.

“Maybe you could ask the Man in the Moon about her?” Jamie suggested.

Jack shook his head. “Tried that,” he replied, “and got nothing.”

“Tooth?”

“Doubt it,” Jack said, “she’s got blue hair, which literally can’t be natural, and gave me a nickname. There are probably millions of children we’d have to search through.”

Jamie thought for a moment after this before shrugging. “I’m out of ideas.”

“Yeah.”

“Tell you what, though,” Jamie continued, “if I see her, I’ll try to talk to her.”

Jack smiled a bit at that. “Good luck,” he said, “first two times I saw her she got out of my sight for a second and was just gone.”

“Maybe she’ll talk to a mortal.”

 

* * *

Neither Jack nor Jamie successfully made contact with the mysterious girl.

It wasn’t until nearly a month after that conversation that Jack saw even the slightest hint of “Nat”. It happened as he passed the local bar and grill, Harry’s, and spied a certain flyer taped to their window. The flyer pictured four individuals, all between about 18 and 25 and dressed in dark colors. Three of them were men, but the fourth was a woman, a blue-haired woman in form-fitting black leathers. “The Reapers” the flyer called them. They were a cover band scheduled to play in the bar and grill on Friday night at 8. Armed with this new information, Jack raced off to the Bennett house to find Jamie.

Friday night arrived faster than expected and Jack found himself arriving at Harry’s Bar and Grill alone as Jamie had insisted that the Spirit of Winter go by himself and confront “Nat” after his first excuse of having plans with friends failed to convince Jack. In addition to convincing Jack to go alone, Jamie had also convinced him to leave his staff at the Bennett House for the night. After all, it wasn’t like he was going to need it.

Jack settled himself near the back, a good distance from the crowd and the stage. He was confident that the audience wouldn’t be able to see him, being that they would nearly all be well into adulthood. And, anyhow, he wasn’t here for the show, but, rather, for the girl.

The venue became relatively crowded and eight o’clock arrived. The men of “The Reapers” took their place on stage as the crowd let out a great cheer. All the lights went down and the present band members began to play and sing a short opening. As suddenly as the lead vocals began, a spotlight appeared, shining brightly on a certain blue-haired, leather-clad girl.

_"Now follow me down to it_

_Just follow me down to do it_

_Nobody will know how you come, and you go for it_

_Not gonna get dangerous, you don’t got to worry about us_

_Somebody to give what you get_

_And you get what you need now_ __

_And these lights, get bright so let me show you_

_It would be so so so nice to know you_

_It's as easy as,_

_1, 2, 3, do you see what I do_

_Truth or dare, yes I double dare you_

_You, you, me, now I think you got it_

_One last breath and just spin the bottle now_ __

_You know you don’t need to be so worried_

_Even though below I'm still thinking bout' it_

_1, 2, 3, and I double dare me as well_

_Truth, dare”_

Jack watched, entranced by Nat’s voice and the ease with which she navigated the stage and played the crowd. As the song ended, an enormous cheer swept through the audience and Nat grinned brightly.

“Hello, Burgess!” she exclaimed, “How are you tonight?”

Again, a cheer raced through the crowd and Nat replied, “Well that’s great ‘cause we’ve got a great set for you. This next one’s called “Stutter”. Take it away, boys!”

_"And I'm begging you,_

_Bring me back to life,_

_I just can't stand leaving you alone tonight._

_It's too late to go,_

_Already taken me forever just to try to know._

_One for the money, two for the show,_

_Three to get ready, and four to go._

_For the life of me,_

_I don't know why it took me so long to see._

_I just_

_Stutter, Stutter, Stutter,_

_Di-di-di-di-di-did I?_

_Stutter, Stutter, Stutter,_

_Di-di-di-di-di-di-did I?_

_Stutter, Stutter, Stutter,_

_Di-di-di-di-di-did I?_

_Stutter, Stutter, Stutter,_

_Di-di-di-di-di-di-did I?”_

Jack’s eyes never left Nat as she performed, and for a second there at the end of the song he could have sworn that they locked eyes. That thought, however, was brushed away as the next song began. Before Jack knew it, an hour had passed and “The Reapers” were nearing the end of their time. It was then that Nat addressed the crowd.

“You all have been such a great audience tonight,” she said, “but, unfortunately, we’re almost out of time.”

The entire crowd booed at that and Nat smiled just a bit.

“I know, I know,” she said, “so, tell you what, how about I do something special for our last song of the night?”

This gained a huge cheer and Nat laughed a bit and called for the house lights to go up just a bit. Her eyes locked right with Jack’s in an instant.

“You there,” Nat said, pointing right at Jack, “in the back with the blue hoodie.”

Jack pointed at himself in confusion, looking around, astonished by the fact that the audience members who turned to look where Nat pointed happened to actually be able to see him. What was going on?

“Yes, you,” Nat said, “get up here.”

Jack started to protest, but was quickly shoved forward by Nat’s enthusiastic fans and eventually led onto the stage. Nat ushered him over to her side before taking the acoustic guitar that one of her bandmates was handing her. Out of the way, the others were setting up a keyboard and a second guitar while the drummer set up a mic for himself.

After Nat had her guitar all settled and it seemed the other band members were ready, she turned her attention to Jack.

“Why don’t you introduce yourself?” she asked, handing him her mic.

“Uh...Jack,” the Spirit of Winter answered, still completely dumbstruck as to how he could be seen by all these non-believers.

Nat giggled a bit. “Everybody say hi to Jack. I’m sure he’s nervous.”

The crowd laughed a bit at that and echoed back an enthusiastic greeting.

“Alright Jack,” Nat said, placing a hand on his shoulder, “I’m gonna want your help with this last song. Think you can do that?”

“No,” Jack answered honestly, earning a laugh from the crowd.

Nat smirked. “Sure you can,” she said, giving him a pat on the shoulder, “it’s easy. You’ll be helping with backup. You can look on with Frank on the keyboard if you don’t know the words.”

“I don’t know…”

“Come on, Jack,” Nat said. The crowd echoed Nat’s plea and Jack sighed.

“Alright, fine,” he agreed, “but don’t send an angry mob after me if I suck.”

Nat grinned at that and watched him make his way over to Frank before adjusting her guitar and testing out the first chord.

“As always, ladies and gents,” she said, “we’ll be closing with a favorite of mine. Have a good night, Burgess. This one’s called “Cross My Heart”.”

_“So here's another day_

_I'll spend away from you_

_Another night_

_I'm on another broken avenue_

_My bag is ripped and worn_

_Then again now so am I_

_Take what you want to take_

_What you wanna take, what you_

_I miss the stupid things_

_We'd go to sleep and then_

_You'd wake me up_

_And kick me out of bed at 3 AM_

_Pick up the phone_

_And hear you saying dirty things to me_

_Do what you wanna do_

_What you wanna do, what you_

_Take me with you_

_I start to miss you_

_Take me home_

_I don't wanna be alone tonight_

_And I do want to show you_

_I will run to you to you_

_Till I can't stand on my own anymore_

_I cross my heart and hope to die”_

Jack managed to follow and sing along with ease, finding the song absolutely mesmerizing, especially led as it was by Nat’s voice. As the end of the song neared, Jack followed Frank and the other band members, backing Nat’s final repeat of the chorus with a perfectly in tune, and rather chilling mantra:

_“Cross my heart I_

_Hope to die_

_Hope to die…”_

And Nat’s voice continued:

_“Cross my heart and hope to die…”_

With that, the crowd erupted into a fit of cheers and the band members each took a turn to bow before leaving. The drummer was first, then Frank and the guitarist, Nat being the last to remain. She took Jack by the hand and forced him to join her in a deep bow before leading him off-stage and back to the room that had been set aside for the band to relax in before and after the show. Nat glanced at her bandmates and motioned that she wanted the room to herself and Jack. Frank got the message and ushered his fellow band members out of the room under the excuse that they should help clean up.

Once she was sure they were alone, Nat socked Jack rather roughly in the arm.

“Ow!” Jack exclaimed, “What was that for?”

“What in the bloody hell are you doing here?” Nat asked.

“I wanted to talk to you, answer a few questions,” Jack replied, gently rubbing his arm where Nat had punched him, “seeing as you no longer have an excuse not to.”

“Just because I’m no longer acting as a guardian for Anina,” Nat said, “doesn’t mean I don’t have an excuse to keep my secrets.”

“I think I deserve some answers after that little phenomenon on stage!”

Nat frowned at this and stepped away from Jack before turning away, sighing in exasperation.

“Fine,” Nat said after a moment, “ask away. I’ll answer what I can.”

“Fine,” Jack replied, “firstly, why can’t you answer all my questions?”

“I told you last time, Jack,” Nat explained, “there are rules.”

“What rules?” Jack asked, “Since when do mortals have rules about what they can share with immortals? Since when can non-believers see me and hear me? And another thing: since when can mortals simply vanish as easily as you can?”

Nat groaned in frustration and glared over at Jack before heading for the nearest exit. Jack tried to follow her, but she held up a hand to stop him.

“I just need some air,” she said, “...I promise I’ll come back in and I’ll try to answer your questions...I just need to think.”

She slipped out before he could protest and Jack was left utterly confused. There was definitely something strange going on. Nat had never once given him a straight answer with any substance. Every word out of her mouth was carefully chosen, calculated. What reason would anyone, much less anyone mortal, have for being so secretive?

Jack turned his head to the door at the sound of it opening and watched as Nat slipped back inside.

“So?” Jack prompted.

“I need you to swear that you won’t repeat anything I’m about to tell you,” Nat said sternly.

“On my honor,” Jack replied.

“No,” Nat said, shaking her head, “cross your heart.”

Jack raised an eyebrow skeptically, but did as he was told, crossing his heart and muttering the obligatory statement.

“Cross my heart and hope to die,” he said, “...now will you answer my questions?”

“Yes,” Nat said, “but one at a time.”

“Alright...why can you see me if you aren’t a believer? Actually, more importantly, how could anyone see me tonight?”

“Magic,” Nat replied, “my magic. I was born with a few abilities. I’ve never had trouble seeing immortals like yourself and, should I wish it, I can grant that gift to others for a time.”

“You have magic?” Jack asked, astounded as to how that could be possible, “You know, you could have just outright told me…”

“This isn’t something I can just hand out,” Nat explained, “it’s a closely-guarded secret between myself, the Man in the Moon, and now you.”

“You know the Man in the Moon?”

“Yes.”

“I thought he only spoke to immortals,” Jack said softly.

“I’m the exception.”

Jack stared at Nat, frowning. While the explanation made perfect sense, and accounted for all of his worries and questions about her, Jack still questioned whether Nat was telling the truth.

“Your name’s not really Nat, is it?”

“Publicly, it is,” Nat replied.

“And privately?” Jack prompted.

“That’s classified.”

Jack groaned in frustration at the response, bringing a hand up and proceeding to rub his temples. Nat watched, and, with a sigh, placed a hand on Jack’s shoulder.

“I’ve answered all of your questions that I can,” Nat said, “and I know it’s probably exciting to have stumbled upon me, but we can’t meet again. You need to stop looking for me. By all accounts I should never have followed you so closely as to attract your curiosity, and I’m sorry I did, but it is of vital importance that you forget about me and move on. You have your job, Jack Frost, and your secrets...and I have mine.”

That was the last that Jack saw of Nat for a long time.


	2. Chapter 2

Thirty-three years passed and Jack saw Jamie and his sister Sophie grow up and start families of their own. Neither of them stopped believing in the Guardians, even as their friends did, and they made sure to pass that belief onto their own children.

Jack remained in close contact with Jamie, Sophie, and their respective families, stopping to visit often during the winter months and taking the time to spread the fun throughout the town.

The year was now 2050 and Jack, along with the Guardians and the thousands of different immortals scattered around the world, was preparing for the semi-centennial conference of the immortals. Every fifty years a conference was held by Mother Nature where any and all immortals could voice their opinions and concerns on certain matters of the world. Jack tended to dread the meeting, but he saw the importance of it and, for that reason, kept his complaining to a minimum.

When the day of the conference finally arrived, Jack and the Guardians journeyed to Mother Nature’s Sanctuary and took their place in one of the balcony levels overlooking the auditorium. From their vantage point they absently watched the rest of the immortals arrive and find their seats. After a few moments of this, North, Bunny, Sandy, and Tooth all lost interest and began chatting. Jack, however, paused as he caught sight of a particularly interesting immortal.

The immortal’s pitch black cloak stood out starkly against the colorful auditorium. In their right hand was a large scythe, glinting in the bright light. Jack watched as the cloaked immortal made their way to the one shaded balcony and seated themself. It was then, when Jack was sure he wouldn’t lose track of the immortal, that he turned to the rest of the Guardians.

“Do you guys know who that is?” Jack asked, pointing over at the shaded balcony.

North looked at Jack like he was crazy after following the Spirit of Winter’s gaze.

“Who?” he asked, “I see no one.”

“There’s no way I’m the only one seeing them,” Jack said, glancing at the others, “Tooth? Sandy? _Bunny_?”

The other Guardians turned to look and frowned, shaking their heads and Jack groaned in frustration.

“Maybe you’re seeing things, mate,” Bunny suggested.

“I’m _not_ crazy!” Jack protested, “There’s someone over there! They’re wearing a black cloak and they’re carrying a scythe!”

“Sounds a lot like the Grim Reaper,” Bunny replied, “and everyone knows that that’s one Legend that has no truth to it. There’s no “Death” and there’s no “Grim Reaper”.”

“How can you say that?” Jack asked, “Especially when the people of the world say the same about each and every one of us?”

“Because, unlike them,” Bunny said, “I know fact from fiction.”

“But-”

“Jack,” Tooth said softly, “there’s nothing there. I know you think there is, but you have to forget about it.”

Jack sighed and glanced over at the balcony again, watching the cloaked figure for a moment before reluctantly nodding.

“Welcome, all!”

All attention snapped to the podium where Mother Nature had come to stand. The immortal smiled and gazed around the auditorium.

“It is a pleasure to see you all again,” she said, “but, unfortunately, I must begin this meeting on a sour note. I have received an anonymous tip that Pitch Black is again becoming active.”

A collective gasp of shock arose from the gathered immortals and Mother Nature raised a hand to silence them. She continued in a calm tone.

“There is, as of yet, no need to worry. However, we do need to prepare for his possible return.”

Suddenly, one of the immortals seated on a lower level stood and exclaimed, “How do you know you can trust the anonymous tip? How do you know it’s not all part of some elaborate trap by someone far worse than Pitch?”

A wave of confusion raced through the crowd in response and North suddenly stood.

“Assuming the tip is true, how could Pitch return? We know all his tricks and could counter anything he throws at us!”

“Now, now,” Mother Nature said, watching as North and the other immortal slowly returned to their seats, “regardless, something must be done in precaution. If Pitch is indeed active again, he could be planning anything and we’ve no way to know what it is.”

The meeting continued like this, immortals voicing their concern over every possible action in response to the tip and Mother Nature doing her best to defuse any possible disagreements between immortals. Jack, though worried about Pitch, quickly lost interest and instead turned his attentions to the shadowed balcony.

“Why would the tipper remain anonymous? You’d think they have something to hide!”

Jack had no idea why, but that one exclamation broke through and stuck with him as he watched the cloaked figure. It seemed, to Jack, that the figure also felt something at that comment.

“Maybe they do,” he mumbled to himself, resolving to keep a close eye on the cloaked immortal. With any luck, he’d try to confront them after the meeting. He had a feeling that that tip had something to do with them.

Finally, after hours upon hours of arguing over this and that and occasionally returning to the topic of Pitch, Mother Nature called the conference to a close. Little to no headway had been made with the matter of Pitch’s possible return, but at least now the immortals were on guard.

North placed a hand on Jack’s shoulder, grabbing his attention. The Spirit of Winter glanced up at his fellow Guardian as the man spoke.

“We are heading back to workshop. You coming?”

Jack stared up at North for a moment before flicking his gaze back to the same shadowed balcony he’d been watching the entire conference. With a soft sigh, he shook his head, making up his mind.

“I’ve got something I need to do,” he replied, returning his attention to North, “don’t wait up.”

With a shrug, the other Guardians all followed North through one of his snowglobe portals and slipped away to the North Pole. Jack watched them, and most of the other immortals, leave before he finally took to the air and flew to the balcony where the cloaked figure remained calmly seated. It seemed they were oblivious to Jack’s presence until the Guardian placed his hand on the immortal’s shoulder.

“I’ve got some questions for you,” he said softly, letting go of the immortal’s shoulder before going to take a seat beside them. In a rare move, he set down his staff. The cloaked immortal visibly relaxed as Jack set down his staff and then gestured with a wave of their hand for Jack to get on with his business.

“None of the other Guardians could see you,” Jack said, “no one seemed to realize you were here. Why? Why can I see you when no one else can?”

The immortal was silent on the issue. Jack waited a long moment before sighing.

“Okay, new question...you gave Mother Nature that tip-off, didn’t you?”

At this the immortal gave a slight nod.

“Only answering yes and no questions then,” Jack mumbled, “alright…”

Jack trailed off, mentally returning to an earlier conversation before responding again.

“The other immortals seem to think that the “Grim Reaper” doesn’t exist. They’re wrong, aren’t they? You’re the Grim Reaper, aren’t you?”

The immortal was visibly stunned by Jack’s deduction, that much was clear even though Jack could see no hint of their face or even a sliver of skin. The cloak hid everything but their surprise. They eventually nodded.

“Look,” Jack said, “regardless of what happened during the conference and regardless of what the other immortals think, if you say Pitch is becoming active again, then I’m inclined to believe you. You hear anything else, I want to know. Maybe if they all hear it from a known source like me, they’ll take some real action.”

The Grim Reaper nodded at this, clearly agreeing with Jack’s logic, and Jack smiled just a bit.

“If you ever decide you want to actually talk,” Jack said, “with words, you can find me at the South Pole. I have a sort of lair there…”

The Grim Reaper seemed to think about this a moment before finally nodding. After that, they gathered up their scythe, gave Jack a nod of farewell, and vanished into the shadows before Jack could protest. The Spirit of Winter continued to sit there, staring dumbly at the space the Grim Reaper had just vacated.

 

* * *

“I’m not crazy, guys! I swear, the Grim Reaper’s real!”

“Jack,” North said, “Grim Reaper is not real. Just story.”

“And what are we, then?” Jack asked, raising an eyebrow, “You gotta believe me. They’re the one who gave Mother Nature the tip-off.”

“And you know this how?” Tooth asked.

“I talked to them,” Jack replied, pausing a moment before continuing, “well, kind of…”

“Kind of?” Bunny prompted.

“They only answered yes or no questions with a nod or shake of the head,” Jack explained, “they never actually spoke…but, guys, you can’t seriously tell me that I didn’t talk to the Grim Reaper. They’re real, it’s just, for some reason, I’m the only one who can see them.”

“Sorry, Jack,” Bunny said, “we all want to believe you, mate, but without some hard facts I just don’t see how we’re supposed to believe that the Grim Reaper exists.”

“You’re all impossible!” Jack exclaimed, groaning in frustration and laying his head down on the table, effectively hiding it from the rest of the group.

Sandy, sitting beside Jack, frowned and placed a gentle hand on Jack’s shoulder in an attempt to comfort him. Secretly, Sandy wanted to believe Jack, but he surely wasn’t going to say anything on the matter while they were surrounded by the others. he’d be shot down in an instant, just like Jack had been.

The Guardians’ meeting continued for a short while after that before drawing to a close. The very instant it was over, Jack flew out the nearest window without a word.

“He seems really upset,” Tooth commented, frowning.

“He really believes he saw Grim Reaper,” North added.

“He’ll get over it,” Bunny said.

“Hope so,” Tooth mumbled.

 

* * *

Jack arrived back at his lair, as it were, within an hour and disappeared inside. It wasn’t until he had journeyed to the central room of the ice compound that he finally stood still for even a moment. He let loose a scream of frustration that echoed throughout the halls before slowly composing himself.

“Stupid! Why would they believe me now if they didn’t before? I’m so stupid!”

Jack sighed and ran a pale hand through his snow-white hair, glancing around the room. This room was the centerpiece for his compound, holding a doorway to each separate wing. A skylight allowed light to filter in, be it sunlight or moonlight. As it was currently, being the period just before the South Pole’s night began, very little sunlight filtered in and most of the room was bathed in shadows. The lack of light didn’t bother Jack in the slightest. In fact, the current level of light was particularly soothing to him, though he couldn’t quite figure out why.

Jack’s thoughts screeched to a halt when he caught sight of something pinned to the icy wall before him. He made his way over and yanked the offending object from its perch to discover that it was a piece of paper. Where had it come from?

Wait- was that writing?

_Jack,_

_I expect you’ll likely need someone to talk to, after that undoubtedly unpleasant meeting with the Guardians where you tried to convince them of my existence. I’ll be in your sitting room when you’re ready._

_-Grim_

No sooner had Jack finished reading than he raced off toward the sitting room, arriving to find the Grim Reaper seated at a new table on the other side of the room. The scythe was leaning against the wall behind its owner, and Grim was looking in Jack’s direction, the cloak never failing to hide whatever form the Reaper took beneath it.

Jack slowly made his way over to the table and sat down across from his guest, placing the letter on the table and noting that Grim had brought along a legal pad and a pen. It was clear that the Reaper would be refraining from speaking aloud...that is, if they could.

“How’d you know I would try to convince them?”

The Reaper took the legal pad and the pen, writing out a response. A short moment later, they placed the answer before Jack.

“ _It’s in your nature._

_That...and I might have followed you._ ”

Jack was torn between being offended and amused at that. Amusement won out and he chuckled, sliding the legal pad back to the Reaper.

“So I’m guessing you’ll answer more than yes or no questions now,” he said, “so, um...well, I suppose it’d be rude if I didn’t ask what you wanted to be called.”

The Reaper wrote out their response and showed Jack, watching as he read the writing aloud:

“ _Thanatos._ ”

The Spirit of Winter glanced up at the Reaper, Thanatos, as if weighing whether the name fit. Slowly, he smiled, nodding.

“Thanatos it is, then,” he replied, “so, Thanatos, how come I can see you but no one else can?”

This response took a lot more time. Jack watched as Thanatos wrote, noting the careful pauses the Reaper took, likely choosing the correct way to word the response. Jack waited patiently, absently tapping his fingers on the table. Finally, Thanatos placed their response before Jack and waited as he read.

“ _I have the ability to prevent those who do not know of my existence from seeing me. I also happen to be able to force those who do not believe I exist to see me. Unfortunately, when someone knows of my existence, I can no longer hide myself from them. Such is the case with you._ ”

Jack looked puzzled after he finished reading. He set down the legal pad and looked over at Thanatos, studying the Reaper curiously.

“But I had no idea you existed before the conference,” he said, “so why should I have been able to see you?”

Jack looked to Thanatos, pleading with his eyes for the Reaper to respond, but they made no move to take up the legal pad again. Jack would gain no response on that matter.

After a long moment of silence, Thanatos took up the legal pad again and wrote out a question for Jack.

“ _Will you keep my existence a secret?_ ”

A sigh escaped Jack’s lips at this.

“You want me to act like I totally agree with Bunny and the others? You want me to act like I don’t know that you exist?”

Thanatos nodded.

“Ugh!” Jack groaned, bringing a hand up and rubbing his temples, “Fine...if that’s what you want, then fine…”

Jack glanced down at the legal pad at the sound of a finger tapping. Said finger was bathed in shadows and could not be clearly seen. The message it was pointing to, however, was clear as day on the page.

“ _Swear it. Cross your heart._ ”

With a glance to Thanatos, Jack nodded, crossing his heart.

“Cross my heart and hope to die,” he replied.


	3. Chapter 3

Thanatos became a frequent visitor of Jack’s sanctuary, providing Jack with companionship that he would only have found in the Guardians. Sure, he had the children he entertained and Jamie and his family, but mortal lives lack a constancy that immortals possess. To be able to have such a constant, unchanging companion was a deep comfort to Jack.

However, regardless of the time the pair spent together, they could be considered little more than acquaintances. Thanatos still refused to speak aloud and kept many blatant secrets from Jack whereas Jack was a proverbial “open book”. This fact seemed to be especially prevalent today, at least to Jack, as the pair sat across from each other, deeply invested in a game of chess.

Jack made his move, not noticing that he had doomed his queen until Thanatos took it with their pawn. He frowned at the sight, glaring down at the chessboard, as if attempting to will the pieces to sabotage his opponent.

Thanatos had shoved the familiar legal pad in front of Jack before the Spirit of Winter had noticed that the Reaper had taken up the pen.

“ _Something’s bothering you._ ”

“Gee, what was your first clue?” Jack mumbled, running a hand through his hair and looking away. After a moment, Jack turned to glance at Thanatos and found that they were watching him intently, patiently. Finally, with a sigh, he gave in.

“It’s just...look, Thanatos, I want to trust you. I want to be your friend, something you sorely need based on the amount of time you spend here, but it’s hard when you barely tell me anything about yourself. Hell, I still don’t know which pronouns to use with you!”

“ _You’re uncomfortable with my level of secrecy._ ”

“Yes,” Jack replied, “I am.”

“ _Would it be any consolation to know that you already know more about me than any single person, other than the Man in the Moon?_ ”

Jack frowned, lifting a pawn from the board and beginning to fiddle with it. “I suppose,” he said, “but it doesn’t change the fact that it feels like you know everything about me.”

When no response came, Jack looked up. Thanatos held the pen and pad in position to write, but seemed to be having some sort of internal crisis. After a long moment, a response was scrawled on the page and shown to Jack.

“ _I keep my secrets because I must. You were the ace up the Guardians’ sleeve during Pitch’s last coup. I’m the ace this time, and the less you know about me beforehand, the better._ ”

Jack had just enough time to finish reading the response before the pad was yanked away again and Thanatos began writing again. This time, when they had finished writing, Thanatos laid the pad on the table before Jack.

“ _That’s not to say we can’t be friends, Jack. You just need to have faith in me. When the time is right, I’ll answer all of your questions. Every. Single. One. Cross my heart and hope to die._ ”

Jack smiled just the slightest bit at that and finally made his next play.

“I’m gonna hold you to that.”

 

* * *

Jack jolted awake, sitting up instantly and looking around to see what could possibly have woken him. Thanatos stood beside his bed, cloaked, as per the usual. Jack barely had a chance to glare at his guest and rub his eyes before that all-too-familiar legal pad was forced into his field of vision.

“ _Pitch is making his move. He is targeting the adults. He plans to drive them mad with fear, leaving the children to follow in their footsteps._ ”

“This is happening now?”

“ _Yes. Some have resorted to suicide and it is no longer within my abilities to lead them onward to the afterlife. Lingering spirits, nightmares, dark forces in general...we have a crisis on our hands._ ”

“We have to tell the Guardians!” Jack exclaimed, sliding out of his bed and grabbing his staff. At a sudden thought, he stopped in his tracks.

“It’ll take me an hour to get to the North Pole, and that’s at top speed,” he said, “we don’t have that kind of time, do we?”

Thanatos shook their head and thrust the pad before Jack with their response.

“ _We don’t. Luckily, there’s another way to get you to the North Pole._ ”

Jack handed the legal pad back to Thanatos, looking at them questioningly. The pad was stashed within the cloak before Thanatos held out their right hand to Jack. For the first time, Thanatos’s hand became visible as it left the safe shadows of the cloak. Jack was taken aback by the sight of skeletal hand, with bones that seemed to be stained a deep gray. Had he had more time, Jack surely would have contemplated what the presence of a skeletal hand could mean for the rest of the form beneath that cloak, but, as it was, he pushed the thought aside and took the offered hand.

In an instant, the pair melted into shadows and rematerialized within North’s Workshop in front of the Globe of Belief. Jack shuddered and let go of Thanatos’s hand, stepping away. He was visibly shaken by the journey, that much was clear.

“Remind me never to do that again,” he mumbled, trying and failing to check himself over inconspicuously, “what was that?”

“ _Shadow travel,_ ” Thanatos wrote, “ _an ability I share with Pitch. Have North assemble the Guardians. Call no attention to me._ ”

Jack nodded his understanding and raced off into the Workshop in search of North. He found the Russian in his study, playing with ice sculptures, and thoroughly surprised the man when he hurled a snowball at his back.

“Jack! What are you doing here?” North asked, standing and turning to face the Spirit of Winter.

“Call the Guardians,” Jack said, “we have a problem and I’d rather only have to explain it once so don’t ask.”

North eyed Jack suspiciously, but could not ignore the serious look plastered on the Guardian of Fun’s face. With a silent nod, North raced off to send out the signal.

It was just barely an hour later that all the Guardians had arrived and assembled before the Globe of Belief. Thanatos had taken refuge in a shadowed corner and Jack had chosen to remain close to the Reaper, should they need to provide any information. No one had commented on Jack’s placing himself in the shadows, but all eyes were on the newest Guardian, awaiting the news that had gathered them.

“Out with it, mate,” Bunny said, “what’s going on?”

“Pitch,” Jack deadpanned, “he’s back.”

“How do you know?” Tooth asked.

“Not important,” Jack replied, waving that question away, “what’s important is that he’s making his move as we speak. He’s going after the adults this time, driving them mad with fear.”

“And that fear travels to the kids…” North finished, frowning as he caught on.

“What are we supposed to do?” Tooth asked, visibly worried now.

“We could try to keep the kids believing,” Bunny said, “but if the fear is spreading from the adults, we’ll be fighting a losing battle.”

“And adults can’t see us!”

Sandy made a question mark above his head, looking to Jack. _Any ideas?_ he seemed to ask.

“I…” Jack trailed off, frowning. He had one, one which he was sure Thanatos had already thought of. The fact that Thanatos had yet to mention it, though, worried Jack. If Thanatos couldn’t come into the open yet, then what were they to do? Hadn’t Thanatos said they were the proverbial “ace up the sleeve” this time? But…

Jack sighed. It wasn’t his place to go revealing Thanatos, even if he felt it was the correct time. Surely the Man in the Moon would play his trump card when the time was right.

“I’ve got nothing,” Jack finally said.

“Perhaps we could confront him!” North suggested.

“We’re losing believers by the minute, North!” Tooth exclaimed, “What makes you think we’d be a match for him?”

Jack, however, had perked up at this idea and briefly stole a glance at Thanatos. The Reaper gave the slightest of nods and Jack took that as his cue to pipe up.

“Something tells me that’s exactly what we need to do.”

Tooth and Sandy at once began to voice their complaints, but Jack held up his hand to silence them.

“Trust me,” he said.

Reluctantly, everyone finally agreed.

“We kind of need to find him to confront him,” Bunny commented.

“He wants to get rid of us,” North said, “He will come to us.”

“Which means,” Jack said, a smirk appearing on his lips, “that we get to pick the place.”

 

* * *

Jamie was startled nearly out of his wits when Jack, North, Tooth, Bunny, and Sandy appeared in his kitchen out of nowhere. In fact, he nearly decapitated Jack with the knife he was holding when the Spirit of Winter tapped him on the shoulder.

“Jesus, Jack!” Jamie exclaimed, laying the knife on the counter next to the carrots he had just finished chopping.

“Sorry,” Jack said.

“We have problem,” North said.

“The kind of problem that warrants sneaking up on me out of nowhere?” Jamie asked.

“Well,” Bunny replied, “it involves Pitch, so yeah.”

Jamie sobered instantly at that, looking around the group before settling his gaze on Jack.

“What do you need me to do?”

“We need as many people assembled in the park as possible by nightfall,” Jack said, earning a collection of strange looks. It was clear that he was announcing this for the first time to everyone.

“What are you playing at, Jack?” Bunny asked.

“Trust me,” Jack said.

With a sigh, Jamie nodded. “That gives us just under two hours,” he said, taking one last look around the group before pushing past North, “I’ll go get Sarah and the kids and get started.”

 

* * *

Jack and the Guardians sat assembled in the Bennett living room. North had taken control of the couch while Tooth and Sandy had chosen to share the recliner. Bunny chose to sit on the floor while Jack stood by the wall. By now Thanatos had joined the group and was standing near Jack, not that it mattered where the invisible Reaper stood other than for communicating with Jack.

“So, Jack,” Bunny said, “you gonna explain your plan to us?”

“How many times do I have to say it? You’ve gotta trust me,” Jack replied.

“You’re making that really hard to do with all of these secrets,” Tooth said softly.

“It’s necessary. I promise, you’ll understand afterward.”

“You’ve been acting strange lately, Jack,” North commented, “not normal. How do we know we can trust you?”

“What’s wrong with you guys?” Jack asked, “I’m a Guardian, just like you. You know you can trust me, so why are you doubting me?”

There was silence in the wake of Jack’s exclamation. No one seemed quite sure as to how to react. Sandy looked pretty uncomfortable with the turn the conversation had taken, and everyone else was avoiding Jack’s gaze. Jack stole a glance at Thanatos, silently pleading for permission to spill the beans. Thanatos simply shook their head and Jack sighed.

“Look,” Jack finally said, “I have a plan and I’m going through with it. It also happens to be the _only_ plan we have. That being said, you don’t have to trust me, just follow me.”

The front door slammed open, interrupting the meeting and calling everyone’s attention.

“Jack!” came Jamie’s voice, “It’s nearly time.”

“And how many people did you gather?”

The Guardians, having stood, followed Jack to the door, awaiting Jamie’s answer. Finally, the man spoke.

“Maybe fifty.”

“It’ll have to do for now,” Jack said, slipping past Jamie and out the door, “let’s go.”

 

* * *

As it soon became evident, the people in the park had assemble to stargaze. When questioned, Jamie answered that a stargazing party had been the best explanation he could come up with. As night fell, Jamie joined his family and all of the others gathered in the park, at Jack’s insistence. Meanwhile, the Guardians set up camp across the street, just outside city hall.

A rift had formed between the Guardians and was now especially evident. North, Bunny, and Tooth all remained close together. Jack stood a good distance away, and Sandy felt a bit like the odd one out, standing halfway between each group.

Thanatos emerged from the shadows and placed a comforting hand on Jack’s shoulder before holding up the legal pad.

“ _Pitch is on his way._ ”

Jack simply nodded in response.

“ _You’re upset._ ”

“Well, yeah,” Jack replied, looking down at his feet, shuffling them a little awkwardly, “I mean, they’re my friends and they don’t trust me.”

“ _I know a thing or two about that…_ ”

Jack frowned at that response. “Oh…”

“ _Perhaps they wish to trust you, Jack, but simply cannot find the proper incentive._ ”

“No point in trying now, not when we’re this close to the showdown. They’ll see.”

“ _They’ll all see…_ ”

Jack saw the way Thanatos hung their head at that.

“Something’s bugging you,” he commented, smiling just slightly at the reversal of their roles in the conversation.

“ _It doesn’t matter._ ”

“Yes it does,” Jack insisted, “tell me.”

“ _Fine...remember how I said I could force others to either see me or not? There’s a catch._ ”

“What’s the catch?”

“ _After a time, mortals will forget they ever saw me and I’ll be able to hide from them again. With immortals, once I’ve been seen I can’t ever hide from them again._ ”

“But you were hiding at the conference,” Jack said, “I shouldn’t have been able to…”

Jack trailed off, suddenly figuring it out.

“I saw you before the conference?” he asked.

Before Thanatos could respond, a cry erupted from Tooth, drawing the attention of the other immortals. Pitch had arrived.

“Pitch!”

The shadowed form now stood before the group, grinning devilishly. He took his time to look pointedly at each member, from North to Tooth, Bunny, Sandy, and, finally, Jack. There he paused, taking a step forward, toward Jack.

“ _Lead him to the park._ ”

Thanatos disappeared into the shadows after uttering that statement. It wasn’t until the Reaper was gone that Jack realized they had actually spoken in his ear. The voice...Jack was sure he’d heard it before...

“If it isn’t the Guardians,” Pitch began, smirking, “to what do I owe the pleasure?”

“Recall your nightmares and leave the people be,” North said.

“Why should I?” Pitch said with a laugh, pausing for a moment as a look of sudden confusion settled onto his face, “Wait... _how_ did you find out so quickly? Surely those precious lights of yours wouldn’t have started going out in droves just yet?”

At this the Guardians looked to Jack. North raised an eyebrow and Sandy conjured a question mark above his head. Jack glanced between the Guardians and Pitch, taking a step away from everyone. Slowly he moved to stand with his back to the park, placing Pitch between himself and the Guardians.

“Jack Frost figured it out?” Pitch asked, “Pray tell, just how did the Spirit of Winter catch on so quickly?”

“I have my sources,” Jack replied, though he certainly didn’t sound as confident as he intended.

Pitch simply smirked, stepping closer to Jack who, in turn, took a few steps back. The Guardians followed after the pair, keeping their distance, but staying close enough to listen and intervene if need be. Truthfully, they weren’t quite sure what to do. Jack hadn’t told them much of anything about his plan or his sources. However, the fact remained that he had been right. They were conflicted. Jack was a Guardian, after all, and they wanted to help him, but doubt was creeping in. Perhaps it was just the proximity to Pitch and the decline in belief...or perhaps they had good reason to doubt Jack.

“What were you hoping to accomplish, boy?” Pitch sneered, “Leading your friends here with no idea what you’re getting them into. Look at them! They don’t even trust you!”

Jack finally stood his ground before Pitch, staring the man down. Pitch took one step closer, testing Jack’s resolve, but the Spirit of Winter did not budge this time.

“I know they don’t trust me,” Jack replied, “but that’s only because I haven’t given them enough reason to. I’ve been distant and secretive recently...and I’m sorry.”

The Guardians exchanged a look at this sudden statement. As one they looked to Jack, nodding their forgiveness and watching as Jack slowly smiled.

“Great, look,” Pitch interjected, “this is all very touching, but I have a world to enslave so can we get on with this?”

“ _That can be arranged._ ”

All heads instantly turned toward the new voice. The owner, a cloaked figure holding a scythe, stood at the front of a large group of people, people who were gaping and staring at the group of immortals.

“Thanatos,” Jack breathed, both in awe of and amused by his friend’s perfectly timed entrance.

“Is that?”

“No way!”

“Grim Reaper is real?” North asked, looking to Jack.

“That’s Santa!”

“And the Easter Bunny!”

North, Sandy, Bunny, and Tooth exchanged a look of confusion. It was North who noted that Jack seemed unfazed by the fact that the mortals seemed to be able to see them. Unbeknownst to them, he had experienced this before.

And that was when it clicked.

“Nat,” Jack said, turning to the Grim Reaper, “short for Thanatos...it’s you! It’s been you this whole time!”

At Jack’s exclamation, the Reaper lifted and hand and removed their hood, revealing a head of long, blue hair. Piercing blue eyes were suddenly visible in the dim light, and the Reaper’s white teeth flashed as she smiled.

“Hello, Jack.”

“What’s going on?” Pitch asked, beginning toward Nat, but stopping in his tracks as the people behind her suddenly surged forward and embraced the Guardians in a fit of joy. After the crowd had settled, Pitch and Nat were the only ones who remained alone where they stood.

Nat approached Pitch, stopping directly before him and somehow managing to look down her nose at a man nearly six inches taller than her. After a moment, though, her glare morphed into a smirk.

“What’s going on, Pitch,” she said, “is that all of these people here are having their hope and faith restored. Soon, the same will happen for every single person whose heart you struck fear into.”

“How?”

Nat placed her left hand on Pitch’s shoulder and smiled.

“I have reminded those here what hope and happiness feels like,” she replied, “and for the rest of the world, I will eliminate the source of their fear from existence.”

“You can’t kill me, no matter who you are,” Pitch replied, laughing a bit, “I’m immortal.”

“Oh, no,” Nat said, “I’m not planning to kill you. No, Pitch, I intend to return you to your roots: just a fairy tale, a story, a legend.”

Pitch gasped out in pain as Nat’s nails dug into his skin, collapsing to his knees instantly. He fought to escape her grasp, but was unable. He was reduced to sobbing and begging in moments, but Nat did not let go.

“Nat!”

Jack quickly extricated himself from the group of people who had gathered and raced to Nat. With a final plea from Pitch, Nat released her hold on his shoulder. In an instant, she collapsed into Jack’s arms and the Spirit of Winter carefully lowered her to the ground, propping her head up into his lap.

“What have you done?” Pitch whispered, barely able to hold support himself on his hands and knees.

“No mortal will ever see you again,” Nat managed, wincing as she spoke, “you have no power over these people anymore.”

“What happened?”

Jack looked up to find that the rest of the Guardians had found their way out of the crowds that had surrounded them. Sandy moved to take Nat’s head into his own lap. Reluctantly, Jack let him before standing.

“Nat beat him,” Jack said simply, “he won’t be a problem anymore.”

“What do we do with him, then?” Bunny asked.

“Please,” Pitch whispered, “...I just want to rest…”

Jack glanced down at the man. Looking at him it was clear that he was barely a shadow of the man he had been before. Jack almost felt sorry for him.

“Sandy,” Jack said, giving the Sandman a slight nod. The Guardian of Dreams took Jack’s meaning and sent some dreamsand to Pitch, putting the immortal to sleep.

“Any chance I could get a touch of that?” Nat asked.

“But-”

“Jack,” Tooth said, “let the poor girl rest.’

“I promise, Jack,” Nat replied, “we can talk when I wake up, but right now, I just want to sleep.”

The Sandman did not wait for a cue this time before sending some dreamsand to Nat.

“So that’s Nat, huh?”

Jack turned, coming face to face with Jamie.

“She’s just like you described her back then,” he continued, “blue hair, blue eyes, gorgeous voice, dark clothes…”

“I should have figured it out ages ago,” Jack said, “the signs were staring me right in the face. She could see me because she’s an immortal.”

“Don’t beat yourself up about it,” Jamie replied, smiling, “I didn’t guess it either.”

“Jack, time to go,” Bunny said.

Jack looked to Jamie in a silent apology, but Jamie shrugged it off.

“Go,” he said, “you can tell me everything later.”

Jack smiled at that before going to gather Nat in his arms and slipping through a snowglobe portal with the rest of the Guardians and Pitch’s sleeping form.

 

* * *

Nat opened her eyes and instantly squeezed them shut again at the onslaught of light. She groaned, moving to cover her eyes with the pillow.

“Hey there, sleepyhead.”

“Don’t tease me, Jack.”

Jack laughed. “I think I’ve earned the right after learning that you’ve been pulling the wool over my eyes for the past thirty-something years.”

“At least turn off the lights,” Nat replied, “I feel like I’ve got a hangover…”

Jack shook his head in amusement, smiling just slightly as he went to close the curtains. After the curtains were closed, the room was washed in a decent scattering of shadows. Sensing the change in light, Nat deemed it safe to sit up and open her eyes.

“You okay?” Jack asked, moving to sit in the chair beside Nat’s bed.

“Yeah...I mean, I will be.”

“Good.”

The pair were silent for a long moment, each taking a good look at the other, as if seeing them for the first time. With a soft sigh, Nat glanced down at herself before beginning to remove her cloak. Once it was off, she draped it across the bottom end of the bed. Beneath it she wore a black tank top and black leather pants. She looked completely normal and could have easily passed as some sort of “punk rock” girl, were it not for her skeletal right hand with bones nearly as black as her clothes.

“I suppose you want the full story now,” Nat said.

Jack nodded guiltily.

“Where do I begin?

“A couple thousand years ago I was reborn as the “Grim Reaper”. My job was to ferry souls from this world to the afterlife of their choosing. As many cultures had their own belief systems, they also had their own versions of figures that did my job. Some called me “Death”. I took the name “Thanatos” from the Greek God of death.

“I discovered early on that I could make myself visible or invisible to mortals at will, but I was warned by the Man in the Moon not to reveal myself to any immortals. At the time he was worried that I could be perceived as a threat by any immortal who learned of my abilities. As you are well aware, my secrecy did pay off eventually, but, throughout my history it was almost unbearable being unable to interact with my own kind. Every person I managed to get close to would eventually have to die and it began to hurt more and more as I watched every friend I ever had perish. I would lead them to the next life and then they would be gone.

“Over time I began to learn that cutting myself off from human interaction wasn’t any better. I began investing myself in human history, living among them, to an extent, and being careful not to contribute too much to the furthering of society. I took up hobbies like singing and dancing and painting and acting. I would gain fame, and then let the world forget about me. I would take my time to interact with everyone I could before their time could pass me by.

“When the Man in the Moon told me of Pitch, I agreed to keep an eye on him, since we share the shadows. I essentially became the guardian of the Guardians, as well as the lives of the world.

“When you first saw me, I had been watching and waiting for the right time to approach you. The Mayor’s daughter at the time, Anina, had just one wish left and I desperately wanted to grant it before I would be forced to lead her onto the next life. I fully intended to reveal myself to you completely, but something told me not to. Of course, though, by then you had seen me, so I had to think up something to get you off my case. Trouble was, we kept running into each other. After that conversation at the hospital, I knew you’d keep looking for me, so I set up that concert. I planned to get you alone and convince you to forget about me, which obviously worked for a decent amount of time.

“Then the conference came…

“When you approached me afterward, I was sure you’d put two and two together, but you didn’t. And then you invited me to your sanctuary and I couldn’t very well say no to my first chance at making an immortal friend and experiencing immortal company.

“So I came, and I answered every question to the best of my ability without outright stating the truth. I was sure you’d see right through me, but you never did. And we became friends...we became _really_ good friends…

“And I wanted so badly to tell you all of this, but I couldn’t, and it hurt so much to see you upset because I could have fixed it so easily, but it was necessary...and I-”

“Nat,” Jack interrupted, “I understand. You don’t need to say anything else.”

“I don’t?”

“Everything you did was carefully calculated and for a good cause. And it was necessary. We never could have stopped Pitch for good if anything had been different.”

“How is he?” Nat asked, “Pitch?”

“He hasn’t woken up yet,” Jack replied, “we don’t think he will for a while, either.”

“No, I wouldn’t be surprised if he sleeps for a week.”

A knock startled the pair. Jack went to get the door and opened it to reveal the Guardians. One by one they slipped past Jack and into the room, leaving Jack to close the door in their wake.

“So you’re the one who was behind this whole fiasco,” Bunny said.

“The angel on Jack’s shoulder, as it were,” Tooth commented.

Sandy looked around the group for a moment before suddenly embracing Nat in a hug. Surprised, Nat hugged Sandy back.

“Who’d have thought the Grim Reaper would save our tails?” North said with a laugh, joining Sandy in hugging Nat. Before she knew it, Nat was at the center of a huge group hug.

“Thank you,” Tooth said, smiling at Nat as the group finally removed themselves from Nat. There were tears in Nat’s bright blue eyes, and Jack quickly moved to intercept them, wiping them away with his thumbs and pulling Nat into a hug himself. Nat dug her fingers into the fabric of Jack’s hoodie and hugged him close.

“My name is Thanatos,” she said to the others, breathing in the scent of her closest friend, “...you can call me Nat…”

“Welcome to the family, Nat,” Bunny said, grinning.

“I’m not dreaming...right?” Nat whispered to Jack. The Spirit of Winter shook his head at that and Nat began to smile.

“You promise?”

“Cross my heart.”


End file.
